Just A Bunch of Old Guys Drinking Apple Juice
by The Trickiest One
Summary: Lloyd ordered them all apple juice and noodles, then asked for refills. (Skylor didn't even think to question it but gave them free refills anyway.)


**SUMMARY PT 2: Lloyd likes apple juice, Cole's a grumpy (salty) old geezer, Nya's the ultimate savage, Jay only remembers like one detail from the past (and that genie guy), Kai has the ultimate dad bod, and Zane has a horrible fashion sense, oh, and everyone breaks the fourth wall.**

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Fridays were always going to be Lloyd's favorite days (besides Tuesdays and Thursdays, that's when he taught the kids). He and the gang spent their hours together at Skylor's Noodle House, sung a couple of karaoke songs (much to patrons dismay). Sometimes they shared a couple of non-alcoholic drinks and tea, talked about their past adventures and break up tiny but harmless fights between Jay and Cole. Now that he thought about it, that was actually one of his favorite parts (talking about the past, not the catfights).

Lloyd really missed the old days, where they were still fighting crime and supervillains who were always after his head, back when they were all aboard the Destiny's Bounty, back when they were all, well...younger. This Friday evening would be different though, Lloyd didn't feel like ordering their regular drinks, he was in the mood for some apple juice (What? Let the old man like his juice!). He took a glance at the old picture they had taken 400 centuries ago, they were teenagers back then, masters of their elements. Now, they were masters of being old farts and looking good doing it.

The door opened.

"For your grandfather's sake, Lloyd! Why does it seem like every week we meet, you look like you haven't aged a bit!?" Kai huffed as he sat on the side next to Lloyd, the younger (haha) felt himself slide down his seat a bit. Kai was still doubtful that he could still age like the rest of them, Lloyd still kept his youth in his eyes but his body aged slowly (Thanks, Dad). Lloyd laughed, sliding up his seat.

"Maybe it's because of that Tomorrow's Tea I threw on that Grundle thing long ago," He shrugged, helping Kai grab his fallen cane off the ground. "That or because I run around with kids for three days every week, which reminds me, do you still do those stretches I keep telling you to do?"

The old master of fire rubbed his grayed beard. "Not as much as I used to, s'bad for my back. Jeez, really wish I was younger and more flexible."

"Flexible!? You wish you were flexible!?" A rough, but strong voice joined in on their conversation. The figure walked or rolled, himself to their table. He had rather long hair. (And he's not cutting it anytime soon). "I wish I still had my legs, darn it!"

"Yes, Cole," Kai said, preparing for the worst to come. "We all know the story of how you lost your legs. Please don't tell it again."

Cole, ignoring his request, and proceeded to tell the tragic tale of how he lost his legs during a mission he and Jay went on together (and it was also the same day Jay lost his left eye). It ended with Cole refusing to wear his prosthetic legs (he never liked them anyway) when they weren't training or on missions. Cole took off his black fedora, in memory of his legs or something, old people are so weird.

Lloyd stared into the invisible camera as they do on the Office. (Lloyd thinks you should watch it, it's a good show though the author has seen little bits of it).

"Thank the FSM it's over, you're even worse than Jay talking about that genie nobody remembers," Kai said, leaning his cane over his lap. Outside, the air seemed to get cooler, Lloyd realized that it was snowing. It was December after all. What a time to be alive, it's Jay and Nya!

"No, you remember that weirdo Nadakhan the Djinn? He was all tall and four arms and stuff," Jay said, possibly finishing a conversation he and Nya had. The group moved over for the two. It only took a second before Jay scanned the other's patient faces. "Hey, guys,"

"Is that genie the only thing you remember from like sixty years ago?" Lloyd chuckled. Jay fixed his blue eyepatch (that clearly did not need fixing).

"Well, I do remember that time where we forgot about Cole when he was a ghost and had to fight past villains for the 45 minute TV special one time." Jay ran fingers through his graying hair. "Other than that, I can't remember, it's all a blur. So how's everyone doing after like a week?"

Lloyd just realized that Jay had an accent (Why did it take him fifty years to realize that?).

"Still can't walk up the stairs, so, I'm still salty about it as usual," Cole answered like always while flicking his much longer hair out the way of his face (Lloyd was still confused on how Cole wasn't over something that happened almost thirty years ago, like jeez, he was a very salty old man). (Another note might be that Cole's lonely, and he is in desperate need for a love life, get him someone Hagemans please!). "Anyone else?"

"Jay and I had to face minivan full of screaming kids and a very tired mother, she paid us well," Nya said. (Right, she and Jay owned an auto body shop downtown, nice). The rest of the group proceeded to pass the time with stories of old (and new). Lloyd didn't really have anything exciting going on, like what the author had written earlier, Lloyd trained kids.

The master of energy's week was pretty normal, he exercised, visited his mother's, uncle's, and father's statues in the Corridor of Elders on Saturdays and Sundays, hung out with (a very old, and self proclaimed) Sensei Dareth for a little while, spent some time in the museum looking at his old gi's as little children asked for his autograph. Lloyd didn't mind the kids, he loved them in fact, it reminded him of when he was still a bratty-wannabe warlord (good and bad times). It was the real reason why he wanted to savor each moment of youth that he could before he kicked the bucket (more than half of his bucket-list ideas were done), but that was going to be at least one hundred and eighty-something years later. He'd rather let his friends outlive him.

Checking his watch he'd gotten as a gift for his thirtieth birthday, Zane was late. Zane was never late. Yes, he had a bakery to run (a bit too late for that now), but he always made time for their weekly getups, maybe he got caught in traffic or worse...(Zane would never decline an offer to meet, he's too nice for that!). Lloyd probably guessed that it had to do with the snow outside, they'd all like snow days if it weren't for the cold messing with their joints and Cole's, erm, legs.

"Y'know what would be nice right about now?" Nya broke the silence between the old men. "Punching someone in the face."

"Too bad all those villains are either dead or too old to even think about taking over Ninjago," Lloyd said, waving his hand to beckon Skylor to come over. "But I don't think Nya would stop at that," Lloyd ordered them all apple juice and noodles, then asked for refills. (Skylor didn't even think to question it but gave them free refills anyway.)

"Man, if Nadakhan was here, I'd kick his genie butt any day," Jay said. "But then I'd get kidnapped again, and then you guys would get trapped in that sword again, and-"

"I think your memory's in a doozy, Jay, 'cause nobody remembers that. You 'n Nya made all that up." Cole's bushy eyebrows furrowed. Jay shook his head in denial.

"Well I think your hearing aids going haywire, 'cause I never said anything like what you think I said!" Jay argued (Lloyd facepalmed at Jay's really, I mean really bad memory). Zane put his hand in front of them before they started to beat each other with Kai's cane and Cole trying to run Jay over with his wheelchair (When Zane did get here again?).

"Let's argue like children later," Zane said. Unlike the rest of them (minus Lloyd), Zane couldn't necessarily age, a downside of being a nindroid, so he changes his appearance ever so often in order to fit in with his elderly group of retirees. Today, he wore his hair long and white completed with a shaved beard (He looked like the first Elemental Master of Ice). "Sorry, I'm late, traffic was insane."

"I'll say, what you're wearing in insane, Zane!" Nya snorted. Zane, confused, faced the audience of elders (Wow, Lloyd wanted to shield his eyes, it was so bad). To be hair, uh, fair, Lloyd wasn't even sure if Zane kept up with Ninjago's fashion for old folks anymore, wearing bright Hawaiian shirts, hair in a ponytail, sweatpants, and combat army boots were so 2046.

"Is not what any of you wear nowadays?" Zane asked. The group howled with laughter, even Cole (who was done being salty) joined in on the bad sense of fashion humor. Zane rolled his cyan eyes and sat next to Jay, who put an arm to his shoulder.

"Buddy, who told you that this was okay!?" Jay teased, his eyepatch crinkling in the process. "Do you even read the fashion magazines anymore?"

"I am trying to keep up with today's technology, the internet isn't doing me justice after these years," Zane said, clearly embarrassed. There were two things wrong with this: 1. Nobody wore that anymore, 2. It was 30 degrees outside!

"Well have you tried turning yourself on and off again?" Kai, the self-proclaimed memelord, laughed. Lloyd held his aching side from laughing. Man, he really did miss his friend's youth. They even discussed marriage (Cole thought that it was preposterous to get married when all the girls or guys he'd hit on rejected him) (Lloyd doesn't want to talk about Harumi as she dumped him for summoning his father, she's dead now).

"Very funny." Zane chuckled before drinking his share of juice. Somewhere, somehow, there was a titanium nindroid from the year 2013 facepalming because Zane decided to drink something he does not need. Whatever, Zane doesn't really care anymore. It's 20-something and none of them did.

"Woah...Dad!" A voice squeaked behind them. "It's the ninja! They're old 'n stuff but it's them!"

Lloyd turned around, the kid behind them was so fairly young, probably about six or something (He was a kid for two seasons, so he couldn't really tell). The kid's father, as most adults were, was on his Borg Phone 18, on a call with someone who must be important, he waved his hand around as if to dismiss his kid.

"That's cool, son." The father said and continued with his call. The boy pushed him lightly and then climbed over the booth to sit in between Lloyd and Kai. Neither of them said against the matter nor did they reject it, they always made time for their fans.

"My comics say you guys were like teens or somethin'!" The boy questioned. Lloyd had no idea how to tell the kid that some of the comics were mostly made up (courtesy of Mother Doomsday may he rest in the Meme Realm). The boy then took out an old newspaper photo of the group standing behind the Museum of History after they rebuilt it. "I'm Luke!" (Lloyd noticed that he freckles plastered upon his face, he looked like Jay for a minute there).

"Keyword, kiddo: were." Jay sighed. The boy frowned, now Lloyd felt bad. (That's what you get for being an old geezer).

"Sorry, we don't do crime fighting anymore," Kai said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"If you aren't ninja anymore, then what are you?" The boy frowned, disappointed that his heroes had grown old.

"Just a bunch old guys drinking apple juice, I guess." Lloyd smiled, sipping his juice. The little, non-bratty kid laughed. "It's Gen Z culture, back when the memes were actually funny."

"I think we're becoming baby boomers," Zane joked. The kid laughed again.

"My name's Luke and you're still cool either way! Can you autograph this, please!?" He asked. The old group shrugged their shoulders and signed away.

"Man, I really wish I had my hair from way back then," Kai said, he rubbed the bald growing on the back of his head.

"I just wish that people can not just recognize me by calling 'The King of Eyebrows'," Cole said, yet again moving strands of hair from his face. When the photo was handed to Lloyd, if he could, he'd turn back the clock of youth. Being old was weird.

"So, what're you guys gonna do after this?" Luke questioned them after shaking Lloyd out of his oblivion. Earlier, Lloyd had thought about mini-golf, but it was too cold for that, then he thought about bowling (That was still a maybe in his inventory). "Do you guys ever do fun stuff?"

"Dunno, we might go bowling or go yell at kids for stepping on our lawns." Nya ruffled Luke's hair. He giggled, they all did. "Nah, we do real old people stuff."

"Like what?" Luke cocked his head to the side like those puppies. (Awe, how cute). The former ninja all looked at each other and nodded. It was clear now. Lloyd turned and gave Luke a serious look. It's funny because none of them have children, they'd all pass their powers onto some unlucky kids when they're gone.

"I don't know if you can handle this or not, but are you ready to hear this? 2018 was a rough year for all of us." Lloyd raised an eyebrow. He did somehow sound like his late father, that's a funny thing too. Old-ness, am I right? Luke shrunk a little before whispering a 'yes'. "Have you seen any recent crime sprees lately?"

"Yeah, there's a lot of bad robberies going on."

"Great! Because that's where we're going! Ninja, suit up!"

Lloyd lied. They weren't really just a bunch of old guys drinking apple juice, they were a bunch of old guys still fighting crime and looking good doing it. He also lied about everyone's back hurting, they'd have enough training to ignore the pain. But the entire story was real, like, heck, that really happened. Lloyd regrets nothing. So they took the kid with them.


End file.
